counter melody

Another way to make music more interesting -- use counter melody.

this is a secondary melody which interweaves with the main tune, or fills in when the main tune pauses.

An arpeggiated chord pattern, particularly if it appears above a separate bass line, can often be seen as a simple counter melody.



Since counter melodies tend to be short phrases, great complexity is not always possible or desirable.

Counter melodies can add real style to yoru arrangements,making them sound more orchestral.


How does one go about spontaneous creating a counter melody?

What notes are the right ones?
Where and when can we fit them in?

Any dead spot (a rest or long note in the melody) is the most likely place for counter melody.

Counter melody must often occurs just underneath the main melody but it can also be played above the piccolo in marching band and arrangement.

he simplest way to create a counter melody (one that goes beyond chord arpeggios) is to use the scale from which teh chord is derived. We can't go wrong using our key scale(the F scale is the key of F for example) as the basic source of our counter melody.

We will want to use enough chord tones to help outline the harmony, so using a chord arpeggio as th framework for our coutner melody is also a good idea. We will want to vary intervals and direction; a good ocunter melody never just uns up and down mechanically.



When creating your own melodies, either as counter melodies or as improvised variations to the main melody, you can add more spice by going outside of the diatonic scale and using some chromatic notes.